


ghosts that we knew

by flamebirds



Series: one shots [1]
Category: Batwoman (Comic), Titans (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Betrayal, angst with no comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:22:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25901272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flamebirds/pseuds/flamebirds
Summary: Bette Kane believes in ghosts. She believes in the spectres of your past that haunt you, that hunt you down when you've finally started to let your guard down and tear you to shreds. She's lived with her own for years, seen some of them battle their way back to the mortal plane, others trapped in an eternity of torment.None of them, however, have compared to the ghost of her aunt.
Relationships: Bette Kane & Kathy Kane
Series: one shots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1901311
Comments: 14
Kudos: 9





	ghosts that we knew

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tsukiakari1203](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tsukiakari1203/gifts).



Bette Kane believes in ghosts. She believes in the spectres of your past that haunt you, that hunt you down when you've finally started to let your guard down and tear you to shreds. She's lived with her own for years, seen some of them battle their way back to the mortal plane, others trapped in an eternity of torment.

None of them, however, have compared to the ghost of her aunt.

Kathy Kane has evaded her ever since she found out she was still alive. Not even the goddamn Batman has been able to find her and if Dick hadn't told her that he was _sure_ she'd survived the fall of Spyral, Bette would be looking for a corpse at this point.

But she's not and she can't quite make up her mind if that's worse or not.

The harsh light of her laptop screen glares right back at her, sirens blaring outside the window, as Bette slams it shut. Every lead she follows up amounts to dust, any witnesses vanishing without a trace before she has a chance of catching up with them. Security footage is pointless ━━ if Kathy ever _did_ appear, the Spyral technology she has with her would erase her face in an instant.

It's a mystery, and it's one that Bette can't solve. A part of her wants to reach out to Bruce and Kate, ask for their help on this, but she still isn't entirely sure if she's forgiven them. They knew Kathy was alive for months, for so long, and they never bothered to tell her, keeping it a secret 'for her own good'. So much time that she could've spent working the case has been wasted, trails she could've followed long since cold, all because her cousins decided now was the time to look out for her.

She doesn't want to involve any Bats if she doesn't have to. Even Helena, sweet, wonderful Helena, has been kept out of this. She thinks, from the files and updates on things in Gotham she's spent sporadically, that Oracle may be keeping an eye on her, but she trusts Babs enough to believe that she won't tell any of the others where she is.

She just ━━ she needs _something._ Finding Kathy... it would help, yes, but what she really wants is answers. Did Kathy ever actually care about her, or was she just a pawn used to help her get closer to Bruce? Did Bette mean anything to her, ever, in the entire time she lived with her? And did Kathy ever use Spyral's technology on her? Are there parts of her life that are lost forever, because she got a little too close to the truth?

It's the last one that she fears the most. There's nothing that can fully be ruled out, but the patches in her memory, the foggy parts of her youth, might have a sinister explanation, and she isn't sure how to reconcile with that fact. 

She doesn't like to think about it, but the truth is, she lived in the same house as somebody who plotted to murder the entire superhero community, and she didn't notice. All the clues slipped past her and so many people paid the price for that.

She can't stop until she has her answers, until she gets some kind of justice.

With the sirens in the background, the city of New York so vibrant behind her, Bette _almost_ doesn't hear the sound of somebody slipping in through the open window ━━ _almost._

She keeps herself as calm as possible, not looking behind her, but hand gripping onto her taser. It's dark, in her apartment, the only light coming from outside, but it's enough to cast a shadow of a woman behind her, enough to put her on high guard.

"You've done a better job than most at finding me", Kathy Kane, her aunt, her mentor, the closest thing she's ever had to a mother, says. "I'd say I'm surprised, but I trained you well."

Bette doesn't turn her around, doesn't dignify her presence with anything beyond a bored, "If it's taken me this long, then you clearly didn't train me well enough."

"If I'd had more time", her aunt says, stepping in front of her. Her movements make no noise, quieter than any member of the League of Assassins that Bette has come across, and it occurs to her that Kathy made the initial noise to let her know she was there. "Then you would have exceeded me by now."

"But, tragically, you faked your death", Bette glowers, "leaving me _alone."_

"That was never my intention", Kathy replies softly.

She has to swallow back the lump in her throat, fight against all those forgiving instincts that have been engrained into her. "It's what you did. It's what _everyone_ does."

"Oh, Betty..."

"Bette."

"Yes, I heard you changed it", Kathy says, nose scrunched up in distaste. "Betty always suited you, though, don't you think?"

"No, I don't", Bette says, arms crossed as she stands up. "Are you gonna come in quietly or are we doing this the hard way?"

Kathy laughs, and it hurts, in a way that bullets and knives never could. "You've improved a lot, but I don't think you're _quite_ there yet."

"Well, you haven't exactly been around, so."

"That doesn't mean I haven't kept an eye on you. Kept you safe."

And that ━━ _"Safe?_ How _safe_ was I when I was bleeding to my death? Was it _safe_ when the DEO used me as a bargaining chip against Kate? Please, tell me how _safe_ I was when I _flatlined_ three times."

"Betty━━"

"It's _Bette",_ she spits. "Not Betty. Not Bat-Girl. Not anything to do with you."

"I don't want to hurt you."

"You already have."

Kathy smiles sadly, like she actually regrets it. Bette would love to believe that, to think that this woman could feel any remorse... but she spent years getting close to Batman, to _Bruce,_ as a way to get enough information to _kill_ him.

And besides, who's to say that Flamebird wasn't on Spyral's hit list?

"Don't come looking for me", Kathy says, passing Bette by. She moves faster than she can anticipate, and it isn't until she feels the tiniest prick in her arm that she realizes how hopeless this is. "You won't find anything."

"I will", Bette promises, even when her vision starts to blackout. "I won't stop."

"Oh, Betty", Kathy whispers, catching her before she falls, "You can't find what doesn't exist."

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly don't even know what this is, but, uh, let me know what you think?


End file.
